Police and fire service officers are to descend on an area of Cheltenham they fear could be targeted by criminals.

There are a large number of elderly people living in Brooklyn Gardens, Arle, but police say that far from being worried, residents should be reassured by the fact that the operation will take place later this month.

They say their intention, for the “cocoon operation” on September 26, is to make sure residents know that the police are there for them and to try to deter criminals from targeting vulnerable members of the community.

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While Brooklyn Gardens is not considered to be a crime hotspot at the moment, there have been burglaries there in the past and police are aware of criminals who are based nearby.

Their show of strength will see them try to visit every one of the 170 houses in the road between 10am and 4pm. Regular officers and police community support officers will call at people’s houses, offering residents crime prevention advice.

Inspector Roddy Gosden

The plan is to wrap a safety net around the elderly residents, hence the term cocoon. The operation has been used by other forces elsewhere in the country to try to combat burglaries and what police describe as “acquisitive crimes”.

Officers suspect that it may not have been carried in Cheltenham before or if it has, not for many years.

Other cocoon operations, which will also see firefighters join police in visiting residents in their homes, will be carried out elsewhere in the town on a regular basis.

Inspector Roddy Gosden, the local neighbourhood inspector for Cheltenham, said: “We plan to do this every quarter, with the police leading this first one.

“The next one will probably be at the beginning of December and be run by the fire service.”

As well as giving the police the chance to talk to residents about their home security and firefighters the opportunity to pass on fire prevention tips, the operations could help to combat other forms of crime.

Inspector Gosden said the police might pick up useful pieces of intelligence from the discussions they would have with residents.